EA has announced that it is merging two of its more popular mobile developers, Firemint (the team behind the Real Racing series) and IronMonkey (the folks who did Dead Space HD and Mass Effect Infiltrator) into one huge super developer. Say hello to Firemonkeys! The team will remain based in Melbourne, Australia, and all development team members are expected to stay on board.
Both teams look forward to the unification with Rob Murray, Executive Producer of Firemint commenting, “IronMonkey and Firemint have solid reputations for producing well-known games and we are excited to have the opportunity to share best practices, technology and resources.”
By aligning the strategy of IronMonkey and Firemint, EA is able to create an even more focused team of passionate individuals who are dedicated to developing high-quality mobile game experiences. This merge in the mobile space is resulting in positive overall growth for the Firemonkeys team, as the studio is now hiring for several positions. Fans should expect to see progressive development efforts with upcoming launch and project announcements in 2012.
“Both of these studios have produced award-winning games and we believe combining the incredible talent pool in Melbourne, as well as leveraging the EA brand, sets us up for further success in the mobile arena,” adds Tony Lay, GM of IronMonkey.
Best of luck to both teams. And, um, do you guys have any shirts? That logo is awesome.
